Went Wandering in Western Australia

[Zichar]

Overlooking the cliffs of Natural Bridge
A much more popular spot, a large car park
Rows and rows of coaches and cars, mirror the sun in eye-squinting brightness
Like ants they soldiered on the footpath
Mostly silver haired, a bouquet of floral sunhats bobbing
Marching with a one handed salute
Aimed at keeping them in captive of the crown

<193>

 

[Zichar]

The chittering on my left caught my attention
Crowd buildup was amazing, cries of 'Oh that's so wonderful'
Upper bodies folded over the guard rails, hands raised as makeshift sunshades
What was a poor guy to do, but to join the queue and crane away
Ah, a pod of dolphins swimming away

<194>

 

[Zichar]

Quickly muscled out of the scene by big burly white shirted men
I turned away, my face in a surly pout
Dismissive. They were too far away anyway
Aesop would have been so proud
My attention towards the spot's namesake, the Natural Bridge

<195>

 

[Zichar]

Leaned out as far as I could
This contrast masking business is certainly rather handy

<196>

 

[Zichar]

As quickly as it formed, the mob disappeared
And then it was quiet, I glanced over my shoulders and nary a person to be seen walking up the path
When my wife came rushing over, whispering sotto voce, they're back!
A much larger number than I had thought, the pod came circling back and away into the open sea

<197>

 

[Zichar]

We used up more time than we wanted to
And spent the rest catching up on our schedule
The only stop we made was when I wanted a photo of the pink lake
Hutt Lagoon caught my eye on the way up a few days ago, and here was a repeat opportunity

Parts of it were fenced up, a commercial enterprise farming the algae for beta carotene
Big motors loomed above, churning water, aerated basins, not unlike sewage treatment plants
The lake was shallow and deathly quiet; an odd emulsion of clear water and creamy pastel pink
Slowly lapping the gravel shore.
I dipped my finger in, warm. Oddly tempted to lick and taste its salinity.

Walking in, I lost sight of the road and car, shrouded by rustling trees and tall grass
Inexplicably, my skin was crawling and it felt like someone was watching me
Took the shot and got out of there pronto, running, leaping those last few steps

<198>

 

[Zichar]

Nothing particularly noteworthy as we zoomed down to Jurien Bay
Stopping at Geraldton again to top up our supplies
Seafood for the night, F+C for lunch with gravy
Bacon from the deli, the young butcher asked where we went
When told, he gave me the double thumbs up for feral goats put on the barbie(!)
Plus the best rum raisin ice cream at Jenarlies somewhere at the edge of town
We went for cups and cones and left to prowl the streets
After a bit of back and forth, went in again for a whole tub
The owner was surprised and asked if we were from the city, for he was looking for business ideas and expansion
Couldn't help him there, we cradled the tub gently outside and back into the car

We stopped the night at the Seafront Estate, cluster houses built by the sea what else
Holiday homes, with garages for boats, some were for rent, top half, bottom half or the whole unit
Almost a full circle, we saw these houses from the caravan park on the other side; our accommodation a week ago
It was quiet, newly completed project we assumed, only one other house on the block had lights on

<199>

 

[Zichar]

The jetty alas was the same, semi-torn down and awaiting rebuilding
A touch of class perhaps, the path leading to the jetty a covered walkway
With outdoor white tarps on poles and cables, a popular modern addition
We found out the other drawback of being relatively alone in a housing estate at twilight
Mozzies!

<200>

 

[Zichar]

After staying in rooms and self-contained apartments for most
it felt incredibly opulent to have a whole house to yourself
Though someone with wry humour will note that we kept to one main room most of the night
As the rest of the house was much too cold to wander around in...

<201>

 

[Zichar]

I love one tree hills
Some are strategically placed in the middle of rapeseed fields
Sped past a few pretty choice ones, their gnarled and whorly limbs in poses even a contortionist would applaud

<202>

 

[wywysimba]

Nice work, mate.

 

[fibredrive]

I love one tree hills
Some are strategically placed in the middle of rapeseed fields
Sped past a few pretty choice ones, their gnarled and whorly limbs in poses even a contortionist would applaud

this is beautiful.

 

[Zichar]

Nice work, mate.

this is beautiful.

Thanks guys

>>

Had thought the town of New Norcia was rather unique and planned to have our route pass by
The only monastic town in Australia, it's a Benedictine monastery where currently people can still go to seek solace and spiritual refuge.
I had wanted to stay the night - there's room accommodations, one's only chance to savour their famous Abbey Ale.
Monastic quarters and converted guesthouses were also available.
But it looked rather run down in photos online and was vetoed against it when everyone else decided it was much too spooky

We got here just in time for the tour and it was pretty fascinating wandering from building to building. There's quite a bit of history in them walls.
Was told that after throttling of funds and budget cuts along with their principles to stay self-sufficient,
they now offer up for purchase their once secret wonderful produce to the rest of the world
Award winning wines fortified or not and olive oil, breads I've read were a huge specialty too

In the Oratory Chapel, a pipe organ with reversed black lower keys and white uppers
And an altar at the other end

<203>

<204>

 

[Zichar]

There's a truckload of detail in the walls, ceilings and ornaments
Fancy curlicues decked with gold leaf no less
I certainly appreciate their skill and meticulosity, o' craftsmen of yore

<205>

 

[Zichar]

<206>

<207>

<208>

 

[Zichar]

The church had also unfortunately participated in stolen children
Aboriginal children were taken away from their parents as wards of the state
And housed in the church's compound and taught to do simple reading and writing, religion,
and also a basic trade - being a barber for example
The segregation for boy's school, girl's school - both of whom were taught the sciences and humanities amongst others
- also involved a trade school for the aboriginal children, St Mary's school
Looks a lot less sinister in the day time

<209>

 

[Zichar]

And so I will end the thread with two more from New Norcia whose chapels are simple yet intricate?!
I'm agnostic btw but places of worship fascinate me and also one of the rare moments I take interior shots

I probably overcompensated the last two days with family photos considering I neglected them earlier on,
So I have nothing left but personal photos, spending the final days in Toodyay, hopping from farm to orchard to farm

Thinking back, it's tough to construct a competent and engaging travelogue with even a modicum of consistency
Thanks for visiting

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<211>

 

[bruggink]

Sorry it took so long to reach a landscape shot
On the way up north, we stopped at Yanchep National Park
Taken with a 10-stop, the slow moving ducks, oh so cute the evening before
Turned into brown streaks of annoyance

<18> Loch McNess

Yancep National Park is a really nice place, especially for families. Do you visit the crystal cave?

 

[Zichar]

Yancep National Park is a really nice place, especially for families. Do you visit the crystal cave?

Hi bruggink, nope. We went to the visitors center and if I recall correctly, we missed the tour so just walked around a lil'.
I think I was a bit pumped to want to get to the Pinnacles Desert ... perhaps. Shucks, it all feels so long ago! :S

 

[MGohzxc]

I love one tree hills
Some are strategically placed in the middle of rapeseed fields
Sped past a few pretty choice ones, their gnarled and whorly limbs in poses even a contortionist would applaud

<202>

Nice shot! I like the composition and this B&W is amazing. For sure can hang on my wall...